The Red Bulls began tonight’s match against Sporting Kansas City with a flurry, attacking the goal from seemingly all angles, unloading eight shots and forcing five saves in the first half at Red Bull Arena in Harrison.

They were exposing one of MLS’ leakier defenses, as planned, but were unable to net more than one goal.

“We should have killed the game,” coach Hans Backe lamented.

Ultimately, the Red Bulls (4-1-2) secured three points from this match and moved back up to the head of the Eastern Conference. Still, the 1-0 win over a Sporting team (1-4-1) that has struggled on a season-opening, 10-game road odyssey as it awaits the completion of its new stadium left Backe tinged with disappointment.

“In the second half we couldn’t press them enough,” Backe said. “We have to analyze a little bit and see if we have done something wrong this week because we were so much sharper the last two or three weeks.”

The third straight win, before 20,636, was nonetheless in line with the Red Bulls’ current form.

Luke Rodgers scored for the third time in two starts at Red Bull Arena and was pesky despite tightness in his right knee that limited him to 45 minutes.

“Right place, right time,” Rodgers said of the goal.

The English striker demonstrated again his knack for finding the goal in the 22nd minute, concluding a sharp string of ping-ponged passes with a confident finish.

Rafael Marquez quickly restarted play after Dane Richards was fouled near the midfield line. Thierry Henry one-touched the ball to Dwayne De Rosario, whose curled cross allowed Rodgers an unmarked opportunity at the 6-yard box.

“It’s great vision and smarts from us to capitalize when they had their backs to goal,” De Rosario said.

By that point, the Red Bulls had already failed to capitalize from the penalty spot. Stephane Auvrey’s foul on De Rosario provided the Red Bulls a penalty kick in the 13th minute. However, like Henry in the season’s opening match, Marquez saw his penalty saved by a sprawling goalkeeper.

The save marked the beginning of a terrific night for Jimmy Nielsen, Sporting’s goalkeeper.

Nielsen pawed De Rosario’s swerving right-footed shot wide of the post in the 38th minute with a leaping effort. On the ensuing corner kick, Nielsen sprawled to his left again to deflect Tim Ream’s low, headed shot.

The second half devolved into a ragged contest. Backe said his team couldn’t command the ball as it did in the first.

Part of the reason was the absence of Teemu Tainio, who left with a groin strain. Tainio dictates tempo and distribution from his deep-set position, and without him the defense had to scramble at times.

The Red Bulls nevertheless kept a clean sheet. Kansas City managed only two shots on goal and only sporadic pressure on the league’s tightest defense (.29 goals allowed per game).